Saturday, February 19, 2011

Korean Engineer Endures Hardships for the American Dream

  
     Since he was a young boy, GM engineer In Ho Song had dreamed of working on American cars. Sexy adrenaline pumping beasts such as the Corvette, the Camaro, and the Mustang.  Even Song himself wouldn't have guessed someday he'd be part of a top notch team, designing possibly the most important car the world has ever seen.

     A graduate of Seoul National University Song spent several years at Korean automobile companies Hyundai and Kia.  In 2006 when GM was going through some rough times the "Korean engineer that could" took a shot and applied to what was still the largest auto company in the world.  His dream came true, but like many immigrants who come to the land of the free, change proved difficult.

     "I spoke no English at the time, and it was a real struggle to adjust to life in an American company," said Song.  With a grasp on English that was less than fluent there were more than just cultural difficulties to deal with. "When the boss spoke to me, I'd nod my head and say yes, then turn to my co-workers to find out what was actually said."

     As most good companies should be run however, results are what matter most.  Song's exceptional engineering skills earned him a spot on GM's most important engineering project in their 100 year history. Almost 4 years later the Chevrolet Volt is being delivered to customers all over the United States and winning nearly every major award.

     We here at The Chevy Volt Blog want to thank you In Ho Song, and all the other engineers who are helping our environment get just a little bit cleaner.

7 comments:

  1. From post:

    ...all the other engineers who are helping our environment get just a little bit cleaner.

    And hopefully fast and adrenaline pumping, so people will want, or may I say, need, to buy them.

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  2. Let's hope these become the only choice for people to buy.

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  3. Nice pic up there. With the flag and the Volt. I guess what this article makes me think about is how we Americans are all descendants of immigrants. Wouldn't that be somethin, if there were a Native American on the design team.

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  4. Does this show our failing education system that we have to higher a foreign engineer? Or is it just that GM wants to have engineers from competing companies?

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  5. "Wouldn't that be somethin, if there were a Native American on the design team."

    How?

    ;-)

    (full disclosure: I'm one-eighth Cherokee)

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  6. Thank You Ho Song,
    How about a little Voltec pickup?

    Cheers

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  7. "Wouldn't that be somethin, if there were a Native American on the design team."

    How?

    ;-)

    (full disclosure: I'm one-eighth Cherokee)



    That's funny

    ReplyDelete